alin330

Sam, do car needs to be strip of wax prior to installing clear bra?

mooty

who did the bra on for you previously? What brand was it?
_____________
3m based. forgot the name.

mooty

Sam, do car needs to be strip of wax prior to installing clear bra?
________
i am not sam.
but yes, wax needs to be stripped.
sam will do that for you before he applies the film.
he goes down to do install in LA area periodically.

alin330

Thanks "i am not sam"

OCBen

Here's the point: a repainted metallic body panel will never look as good as the original factory paint, and you will always be able to tell it apart from the rest of the finish. See this thread:

https://rennlist.com/forums/997-forum/226989-hereis-where-a-clear-bra-may-have-paid-for-itself-o-ouch.html

Premier

Here is a link to a detailed description of our "wrapping" process: http://www.discovery-automotive.com/...Content&id=107

BHANE

Hello,

I heard the event was a huge turnout. Just wondering, Did this installer have a vendors booth set up at the event?

Thanks!

Rock on

996toomey

Yes the 3M guy that was there had a little booth and about a 1 sq. ft. piece of meatal half covered with the product. Really could not tell anything about the work or product from his sample.

wross996tt

I hate to argue, but you need a new painter. My paint shop guy can match perfectly the factory paint (even the orange peel). He also adds some polymers to "soften" the paint which allows it to absorb more of the impact of stones. BTW factory paint is really NOT THAT GOOD! My paint guy keeps saying "you want me to match all of those flaws"!

Also, I will bet any money that I can tell if there is a "clear bra" on, regardless of the claims of the installer or the product they are using.

OCBen

Well clearly what is meant by matching the factory paint is not the texture of the application, with the orange peel and all the other flaws, but the color. Solid black is the easiest color to match. But on a metallic paint, not only does the hue of the color have to match the original but so does the density of the metal flakes in the paint, which is usually the most difficult aspect to match. I’ve seen paint jobs where the hue is an exact match in the shade, but in the sun the mismatch in reflection is obvious due to the difference in metal flake density.

I don’t know if it’s been figured out yet how to read and measure the metal flake density of an existing paint and then dialing that up for an exact match on the paint nozzle end. If so, then that would be the solution to exact paint matching.

wross996tt

Absolutely correct, the darker the paint the easier to match. Even the factory has difficulty matching paints lot-to-lot. The paint mfgs. (e.g., PPG) have a very difficult time matching materials to the application processes. Unfortunately not enough science being applied there. That being said a good painter can blend it so it is virtually undetectable (much less so than a "clear bra" IMO)

OCBen

And reapplying a clear bra over a repainted bumper cover, say, will make any "virtually undetectable" mismatch even more undetectable due to the optical altering properties of the plastic film which will help "mask" the fact that it was repainted.

wross996tt

"Optical altering properties" by means of refraction, reflection and absorption could go either way. I state again, I can see any "clear bra" and you will not be able to tell if I have repainted, but this is not really a big deal...you do it your way, I'll do it mine. I just won't put plastic slip covers on my leather couch. GO BRA-LESS!

OCBen

Of course anybody can see a clear bra if they look for it. Nobody is seriously claiming a clear bra is literally invisible. But if nobody knows it's on, it's not at all conspicuous, and is not as detracting as a black vinyl bra, which my daily driver has. If not for the clear film, my 911 would be wearing one of those. It's just for paint protection.

A repaint, on the other hand, may not be noticeable to the untrained eye. But I can clearly tell on a metallic paint finish. And I don't need my loupe to do so.

wross996tt

You Win!